Kyle Dresback

Dear Friends,

Augustine famously said of the two Testaments, “In the Old Testament, the New is concealed; in the New the Old is revealed.” While catchy (presumably in the Latin, as well), the saying has its problems. Not least, the sentiment has popped up in certain strands of Christianity that mine the Old Testament as though it were a collection of predictions or coded puzzles to be “unlocked.” Suffice it to say this has led to some poor readings.

But Augustine’s emphasis on a coherent through-line in the biblical story is a helpful reminder to modern consumer-critics like us who have grown accustomed to standing above the content we consume. When I read a novel or watch a film, I feel compelled to announce to a waiting world what was worth my time (“5 stars!” “Binge-worthy!”) and what was not up to my standards or according to my preferences.

When we bring our consumer-critic habits to scripture, we run the risk of critiquing the text and never being critiqued by it.

Today’s reading from Jeremiah 31 is a reminder that the Old Testament is indeed weird: “The teeth of the one who eats sour grapes shall be set on edge.” String enough of these opaque ancient Hebrew adages together and one can hardly be blamed for preferring the clearer waters of the New Testament and dismissing the Old altogether (“One star: Weird, not modern enough, would not recommend!”).

But despite the difficulties, I do think a humble and faithful reading is rewarded.

Jeremiah 31 provides one of the major through-lines for the biblical story: the promise of a day in which God’s law will be written on the hearts of his people and all will know him, from the least to the greatest. Jeremiah refers to this as God’s “New Covenant”—the very Hebrew phrase that is rendered later by followers of Jesus as “New Testament.”

Jeremiah and the rest of the Jewish prophets make up a key chapter of the story that Jesus himself grew up with and which shaped his understanding of his own life and ministry. Both Jesus and his followers are indecipherable without this Jewish narrative running in the background. With an understanding of this context, the story of God’s decisive work in Christ comes to life in a way that rewards a careful reading of the entire story.

May we be humble and faithful readers.

In Christ,

—Kyle